Gain pattern overlap reduction

ABSTRACT

A wireless communication device includes: a first antenna configured to provide a first gain pattern at a millimeter-wave radio frequency and having a first boresight direction; a second antenna configured to provide a second gain pattern at the millimeter-wave radio frequency and having a second boresight direction that is different from the first boresight direction; and an electrically-conductive device; where the first antenna, in combination with the electrically-conductive device, is configured to provide a third gain pattern that has a first gain differential relative to the second gain pattern that is greater than a second gain differential between the first gain pattern and the second gain pattern over a range of angles relative to the wireless communication device.

CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATION

This application is a continuation of U.S. Pat. Application No.17/683,096, filed on Feb. 28, 2022, entitled “GAIN PATTERN OVERLAPREDUCTION,” which is assigned to the assignee hereof, and the entirecontents of which are hereby incorporated herein by reference for allpurposes.

BACKGROUND

Wireless communication devices are increasingly popular and increasinglycomplex. For example, mobile telecommunication devices have progressedfrom simple phones, to smart phones with multiple communicationcapabilities (e.g., multiple cellular communication protocols, Wi-Fi,BLUETOOTH® and other short-range communication protocols),supercomputing processors, cameras, etc. Wireless communication deviceshave antennas to support communication over a range of frequencies.

It is often desirable to have multiple communication technologies, e.g.,to enable multiple communication protocols concurrently, and/or toprovide different communication capabilities. For example, as wirelesscommunication technology evolves from 4G to 5G or to different wirelesslocal area network (WLAN) standards, for example, mobile communicationdevices may be configured to communicate using different frequencies,including frequencies below 7 GHz often used for 4G and some WLANcommunications, and millimeter-wave frequencies, e.g., above 23 GHz, for5G and some WLAN communications. Communicating using differentfrequencies, however, may be difficult, especially using mobile wirelesscommunication devices with small form factors.

SUMMARY

An example wireless communication device includes: a first antennacomprising one or more first antenna elements with one or more of theone or more first antenna elements being configured to provide a firstgain pattern at a millimeter-wave radio frequency, the first antennahaving a first boresight direction; a second antenna comprising one ormore second antenna elements with one or more of the one or more secondantenna elements being configured to provide a second gain pattern atthe millimeter-wave radio frequency, the second antenna having a secondboresight direction that is different from the first boresightdirection; and an electrically-conductive device, comprising at leastone conductive surface; where the first antenna, in combination with theelectrically-conductive device, is configured to provide a third gainpattern that has a first gain differential relative to the second gainpattern that is greater than a second gain differential between thefirst gain pattern and the second gain pattern over a range of anglesrelative to the wireless communication device.

Implementations of such a wireless communication device may include oneor more of the following features. The range of angles relative to thewireless communication device includes the second boresight direction.The first antenna has a first length, and the electrically-conductivedevice has a second length that is at least as long as the first length.The second length is less than twice the first length. The first antennadefines an aperture plane substantially perpendicular to the firstboresight direction, wherein the one or more first antenna elements aredisposed on a first side of the aperture plane and at least a portion ofthe at least one conductive surface is disposed on a second side of theaperture plane opposite the first side of the aperture plane. The firstantenna has an edge in the aperture plane, and wherein the at least aportion of the at least one conductive surface extends away from theaperture plane at least 20°, relative to the edge, on the second side ofthe aperture plane. The first antenna defines an aperture planesubstantially perpendicular to the first boresight direction, andwherein the one or more first antenna elements and at least a portion ofthe at least one conductive surface are disposed on a same side of theaperture plane. The first antenna has an edge in the aperture plane, andwherein the at least a portion of the at least one conductive surfaceextends away from the aperture plane at least 20°, relative to the edge,on the same side of the aperture plane.

Also or alternatively, implementations of such a wireless communicationdevice may include one or more of the following features. The at leastone conductive surface is displaced from the first antenna by between20% of a wavelength at the millimeter-wave radio frequency and 50% ofthe wavelength at the millimeter-wave radio frequency. The at least oneconductive surface defines a conductive plane within 20° of parallel tothe first boresight direction. The electrically-conductive devicecomprises a frequency-selective surface configured to inhibit passagethrough the electrically-conductive device of first energy of aparticular frequency range more than second energy outside theparticular frequency range, the particular frequency range including themillimeter-wave radio frequency. The millimeter-wave radio frequency isa first frequency that is above 25 GHz, the wireless communicationdevice further comprising a third antenna that includes theelectrically-conductive device, and wherein the electrically-conductivedevice is configured to provide a fourth gain pattern at a secondfrequency band that is below 7 GHz. The electrically-conductive devicecomprises a monolithic conductor that provides the at least oneconductive surface.

Also or alternatively, implementations of such a wireless communicationdevice may include one or more of the following features. Theelectrically-conductive device comprises a frequency-selective surfaceconfigured to inhibit passage through the electrically-conductive deviceof first energy of a particular frequency range more than second energyoutside the particular frequency range, the particular frequency rangeincluding the millimeter-wave radio frequency. The frequency-selectivesurface comprises a plurality of conductive cells displaced from eachother. The frequency-selective surface is configured to suppressfrequencies in an approximately 3 GHz bandwidth in the 20 GHz or 30 GHzrange by 15 dB or more. The wireless communication device includes aprocessor communicatively coupled to the first antenna and the secondantenna and configured to: determine a first power level of a firstsignal received by the first antenna from a particular angle relative toa housing of the wireless communication device; determine a second powerlevel of a second signal received by the second antenna from theparticular angle relative to the housing; and select one of the firstantenna and the second antenna to at least one or transmit or receive athird signal corresponding to the particular angle relative to thehousing based on which of the first power level and the second powerlevel is higher.

Also or alternatively, implementations of such a wireless communicationdevice may include one or more of the following features. The wirelesscommunication device includes a housing containing the first antenna andthe second antenna and defining at least a partially cuboidal shapeincluding a first surface, a second surface, and a third surface, wherethe first boresight direction is substantially perpendicular to thefirst surface, the second boresight direction is substantiallyperpendicular to the second surface, and the second surface is disposedopposite the third surface and displaced from the third surface along anaxis of the housing, and where the first antenna is displaced a firstdistance along the axis from the second surface and displaced a seconddistance along the axis from the third surface, the first distance beingshorter than the second distance.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 is a schematic diagram of a communication system.

FIG. 2 is an exploded perspective view of simplified components of amobile device shown in FIG. 1 .

FIG. 3 is a top view of a printed circuit board layer, shown in FIG. 2 ,including antenna systems.

FIG. 4 is a perspective view of a wireless communication device.

FIG. 5 is a block diagram of an example wireless communication device.

FIG. 6 is a block diagram of transmit and receive chains of the deviceshown in FIG. 5 .

FIG. 7 is a graph of gain patterns of antennas shown in FIG. 4 withoutan electrically-conductive device shown in FIG. 4 .

FIG. 8 is a graph indicating antenna selection for different anglesrelative to the wireless communication device shown in FIG. 4 .

FIG. 9 is an example of the electrically-conductive device shown in FIG.4 .

FIG. 10 is another example of the electrically-conductive device shownin FIG. 4 .

FIG. 11 is a plan view of an antenna and an example of afrequency-selective surface used as the electrically-conductive deviceshown in FIG. 4 .

FIG. 12 is a plan view of a unit cell of the frequency-selective surfaceshown in FIG. 11 .

FIG. 13 is a side view of the frequency-selective surface and theantenna shown in FIG. 11 .

FIG. 14 is a side view of an antenna and an example of theelectrically-conductive device shown in FIG. 4 .

FIG. 15 is a graph of gain patterns of antennas shown in FIG. 4 with theelectrically-conductive device shown in FIG. 4 in place.

FIG. 16 is a graph of a cumulative distribution function with andwithout the electrically-conductive device shown in FIG. 4 in place.

FIG. 17 is a graph indicating antenna selection for different anglesrelative to the wireless communication device shown in FIG. 4 with anelectrically-conductive device in place.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

Techniques are discussed herein for reducing gain pattern overlapbetween antennas. For example, gain differentials for differentmillimeter-wave antennas of a wireless communication device for the sameangles relative to the wireless communication device may be increased.For example, the gain value for a first antenna may be decreased at andnear a boresight direction of a second antenna, e.g., withoutsignificantly affecting a gain pattern of the second antenna. The firstand second antennas may be disposed on adjacent faces of the wirelesscommunication device, e.g., with the boresights of the first and secondantennas being approximately orthogonal. An electrically-conductivedevice may be placed near the first antenna to decrease gain values ofthe first antenna near the boresight of the second antenna. For example,the electrically-conductive device may be a device that is dedicated toinhibiting transmission and/or reception by the first antenna of radiofrequency signals at angles near the boresight (and/or another group ofangles) of the second antenna. As another example, theelectrically-conductive device may be a frequency-selective surfaceconfigured to provide a band-stop filter, rejecting frequencies in aparticular band significantly while allowing signals outside theparticular band to pass with (e.g., little or no) attenuation. Asanother example, the electrically-conductive device may serve two ormore purposes, e.g., affecting the gain pattern of the first antenna andserving as at least a portion of a third antenna, e.g., fortransmission/reception of signals at significantly different frequencies(e.g., sub-6 GHz) than for the millimeter-wave antennas. A processor ofthe wireless communication device may select between the first andsecond antennas for signal reception and/or transmission, e.g., based onpower of signals received by the first and second antennas. Otherconfigurations, however, may be used.

Items and/or techniques described herein may provide one or more of thefollowing capabilities, as well as other capabilities not mentioned.Selection of a better (possibly best) antenna (and/or array) of awireless communication device for use in signal reception and/ortransmission for a particular angle relative to the wirelesscommunication device may be improved, e.g., sped up and accuracy ofantenna (and/or array) selection improved, by widening gaindifferentials between antennas to facilitate selection of an antenna(and/or array) for signal reception and/or transmission. Consequently,latency for communication by and/or determination of positioninformation for the mobile wireless communication device may be reduced.Also or alternatively, latency and/or accuracy and/or throughput ofcommunication using a wireless communication device may be improved.Other capabilities may be provided and not every implementationaccording to the disclosure must provide any, let alone all, of thecapabilities discussed. Further, it may be possible for an effect notedabove to be achieved by means other than that noted, and a noteditem/technique may not necessarily yield the noted effect.

Referring to FIG. 1 , a communication system 100 includes mobile devices112, a network 114, a server 116, and access points (APs) 118, 120. Thecommunication system 100 is a wireless communication system in thatcomponents of the communication system 100 can communicate with oneanother (at least some times) using wireless connections directly orindirectly, e.g., via the network 114 and/or one or more of the accesspoints 118, 120 (and/or one or more other devices not shown, such as oneor more base transceiver stations). For indirect communications, thecommunications may be altered during transmission from one entity toanother, e.g., to alter header information of data packets, to changeformat, etc. The mobile devices 112 shown are mobile wirelesscommunication devices (although they may communicate wirelessly and viawired connections) including mobile phones (including smartphones), alaptop computer, and a tablet computer. Still other mobile devices maybe used, whether currently existing or developed in the future. Further,other wireless devices (whether mobile or not) may be implemented withinthe communication system 100 and may communicate with each other and/orwith the mobile devices 112, network 114, server 116, and/or APs 118,120. For example, such other devices may include internet of thing (IoT)devices, medical devices, home entertainment and/or automation devices,automotive devices, etc. The mobile devices 112 or other devices may beconfigured to communicate in different networks and/or for differentpurposes (e.g., 5G, Wi-Fi communication, multiple frequencies of Wi-Ficommunication, satellite communication and/or positioning, one or moretypes of cellular communications (e.g., GSM (Global System for Mobiles),CDMA (Code Division Multiple Access), LTE (Long-Term Evolution), etc.),Bluetooth® communication, etc.).

Referring to FIG. 2 , a mobile device 200, which is an example of one ofthe mobile devices 112 shown in FIG. 1 , includes a top cover 210, adisplay layer 220, a printed circuit board (PCB) layer 230, and a bottomcover 240. The mobile device 200 as shown may be a smartphone or atablet computer but embodiments described herein are not limited to suchdevices (for example, in other implementations of concepts describedherein, a device may be a router or customer premises equipment (CPE)).The top cover 210 includes a screen 214. The bottom cover 240 has abottom surface 244. Sides 212, 242 of the top cover 210 and the bottomcover 240 provide an edge surface. The top cover 210 and the bottomcover 240 comprise a housing that retains the display layer 220, the PCBlayer 230, and other components of the mobile device 200 that may or maynot be on the PCB layer 230. For example, the housing may retain (e.g.,hold, contain) or be integrated with antenna systems, front-endcircuits, an intermediate-frequency circuit, and a processor discussedbelow. The housing may be substantially rectangular, having two sets ofparallel edges in the illustrated embodiment, and may be configured tobend or fold. In this example, the housing has rounded corners, althoughthe housing may be substantially rectangular with other shapes ofcorners, e.g., straight-angled (e.g., 45°) corners, 90°, othernon-straight corners, etc. Further, the size and/or shape of the PCBlayer 230 may not be commensurate with the size and/or shape of eitherof the top or bottom covers or otherwise with a perimeter of the device.For example, the PCB layer 230 may have a cutout to accept a battery.Further, the PCB layer 230 may include sandwiched boards and/or a PCBdaughter board. Daughter boards may be chosen to facilitate a designand/or manufacturing process, e.g., to reinforce a functional separationor to better utilize a space in the housing. Embodiments of the PCBlayer 230 other than those illustrated may be implemented.

Referring also to FIG. 3 , a PCB layer 300, which is an example of thePCB layer 230, includes a main portion 310 and a portion comprisingantenna systems 320, 330. In the example shown, the antenna systems 320,330 are disposed at opposite ends 301, 302 of the PCB layer 300, but oneor both of the antenna systems 320, 330 may be disposed elsewhere, e.g.,along a side edge of the PCB layer 300. The antenna system 320 includesone or more antenna elements 322 and one or more energy couplers 324coupled to the antenna element(s) 322 and configured to convey energy toand/or from the antenna element(s) 322 from and/or to the main portion310. The antenna system 330 includes one or more antenna elements 332and one or more energy couplers 334 coupled to the antenna element(s)332 and configured to convey energy to and/or from the antennaelement(s) 332 from and/or to the main portion 310. The antennaelement(s) 322 may comprise an array of antenna elements and/or theantenna element(s) 332 may comprise an array of antenna elements and thearray(s) of antenna elements may be configured for beamforming. The mainportion 310 comprises a PCB 311 that includes front-end circuits 312,313 (also called radio frequency (RF) circuits), anintermediate-frequency (IF) circuit 314, and a processor 315. Thefront-end circuits 312, 313 may be configured to provide signals to beradiated by the antenna systems 320, 330 and to receive and processsignals that are received by, and provided to the front-end circuits312, 313 from, the antenna systems 320, 330. The front-end circuits 312,313 may be configured to convert received IF signals from the IF circuit314 to RF signals (amplifying with a power amplifier and/or phaseshifting signals, for example when coupled to an antenna array, asappropriate), and provide the RF signals to the antenna systems 320, 330for radiation. The front-end circuits 312, 313 are configured to convertRF signals received by the antenna systems 320, 330 to IF signals (e.g.,using a low-noise amplifier and a mixer) and to send the IF signals tothe IF circuit 314. The IF circuit 314 is configured to convert IFsignals received from the front-end circuits 312, 313 to basebandsignals and to provide the baseband signals to the processor 315. The IFcircuit 314 is also configured to convert baseband signals provided bythe processor 315 to IF signals, and to provide the IF signals to thefront-end circuits 312, 313. The processor 315 is communicativelycoupled to the IF circuit 314, which is communicatively coupled to thefront-end circuits 312, 313, which are communicatively coupled to theantenna systems 320, 330. In some examples, transmission signals may beprovided from the IF circuit 314 to the antenna systems 320, 330 bybypassing the front-end circuits 312, 313, for example when furtherupconversion is not required by the front-end circuits 312, 313. Signalsmay be received from the antenna systems 320, 330 by bypassing thefront-end circuit 312, 313. In other examples, a transceiver separatefrom the IF circuit 314 may be configured to provide transmissionsignals to and/or receive signals from the antenna systems 320, 330without such signals passing through the front-end circuit 312, 313. Insome examples, the front-end circuits 312, 313 are configured toamplify, filter, and/or route signals from the IF circuit 314 withoutupconversion to the antenna system 320, 330. Similarly, the front-endcircuits 312, 313 may be configured to amplify, filter, and/or routesignals from the antenna systems 320, 330 without downconversion to theIF circuit 314. In other examples, the front-end circuit 312 and/or thefront-end circuit 313 is(are) configured to convert between baseband andRF frequencies, or between a low IF frequency and RF, and the IF circuit314 is bypassed or omitted.

In FIG. 3 , dashed lines separating the antenna systems 320, 330 fromthe PCB 311 indicates functional separation of the antenna systems 320,330 (and the components thereof) from other portions of the PCB layer300. Portions of the antenna systems 320, 330 may be integral with thePCB 311, being formed as integral components of the PCB 311. One or morecomponents of the antenna systems 320, 330 may be formed integrally withthe PCB 311, and one or more other components may be formed separatefrom the PCB 311 and mounted to the PCB 311, or otherwise made part ofthe PCB layer 300 (e.g., on a PCB daughter board). Alternatively, theantenna systems 320, 330 may be formed separately from the PCB 311 andcoupled to the front-end circuits 312, 313. In some examples, one ormore components of either of the antenna systems 320, 330 may beintegrated with the front-end circuits 312, 313, e.g., in a singlemodule or on a single circuit board separate from the PCB 311. Forexample, the front-end circuits 312, 313 may be physically attached tothe antenna systems 320, 330, e.g., attached to back sides of respectiveground planes of the antenna systems 320, 330. Antennas of the antennasystems 320, 330 may have front-end circuitry electrically(conductively) coupled and physically attached to the antennas whileanother antenna may have the front-end circuitry physically separate,but electrically coupled to the other antenna.

Referring also to FIG. 4 , a wireless communication device 400 includesa housing 410, antennas 421, 422, and an electrically-conductive device430. The wireless communication device 400 may be configured formillimeter-wave signal transfer for wireless communication. The wirelesscommunication device 400 may, for example, be a smartphone, a tabletcomputer, a portion of a portable computer (e.g., a display portion or abase portion of a folding laptop computer), a router, a CPE, etc. Thedevice 400 is an example, and other configurations may be used. Forexample, more antennas, e.g., an antenna 425, may be included. Each ofthe antennas 421, 422, and 425 may be representative of one or moreantennas (for example, an antenna array) and may be configured forbeamforming. The electrically-conductive device 430 includeselectrically-conductive material, e.g., metal, configured in such a wayto inhibit at least some frequencies of energy from passing through theelectrically-conductive device 430, e.g., reflecting at least somefrequencies of energy and/or attenuating at least some frequencies ofenergy. The electrically-conductive device 430 may be disposed near theantenna 422 and/or near one or more other antennas if included in awireless communication device. As another example, a processor orcontroller may be included that is configured to activate one or moreantennas selectively, e.g., to activate one of the antennas 421, 422 ata time for signal reception and/or transmission. Each of the antennas421, 422 may be a portion of a respective antenna module that includes afeed structure (e.g., one or more energy couplers) and/or additionalantennas (e.g., disposed in an array). Each of the antennas 421, 422includes one or more antenna elements configured to transduce wirelesssignals into another form of signal (e.g., from free-space wireless toguided wireless, or from wireless to wired, etc.). The antennas 421, 422may each be any of a variety of antennas, with one or more antennaelements of any of a variety of types of antenna elements, e.g.,patches, horns, open-ended waveguides, substrate-integrated waveguides,wireline elements, monopoles, dipoles, loops, helixes, lenses,microstrips with resonant stubs, slotlines with resonant stubs, etc. Thewireless communication device 400 may be referred to by other terms,e.g., an access terminal (AT), a client device, a wireless device, asubscriber device, a subscriber terminal, a subscriber station, a userterminal (UT), a user equipment (UE), a mobile terminal, a mobilestation (MS), a mobile device, etc.

Referring also to FIG. 5 , a wireless communication device 500, of whichthe device 400 may be an example, includes a processor 510, atransceiver 520, and a memory 530 communicatively coupled to each otherby a bus 540. The device 500 may include the components shown in FIG. 5. The device 500 may include one or more other components such as one ormore components in addition to the components shown and/or one or moreadditional components included in the components shown. For example, thetransceiver 520 may include a wireless transmitter, a wireless receiver,multiple antennas, etc. The memory 530 may be a non-transitory,processor-readable storage medium that includes software withprocessor-readable instructions that are configured to cause theprocessor 510 to perform functions.

The description herein may refer to the processor 510 performing afunction, but this includes other implementations such as where theprocessor 510 executes software (stored in the memory 530) and/orfirmware. The description herein may refer to the device 500 performinga function as shorthand for one or more appropriate components (e.g.,the processor 510 and the memory 530) of the device 500 performing thefunction. The processor 510 (possibly in conjunction with the memory 530and, as appropriate, the transceiver 520) may include an antennaselection unit 550. The antenna selection unit 550 is discussed furtherbelow, and the description may refer to the processor 510 generally, orthe device 500 generally, as performing any of the functions of theantenna selection unit 550, with the device 500 being configured toperform the functions of the antenna selection unit 550.

Referring also to FIG. 6 , the device 500 (e.g., the transceiver 520)includes multiple antennas 611, 612, e.g., the antennas 421, 422. Thetransceiver 520 may include one or more receive chains and/or one ormore transmit chains, here a transmit chain 621 and a receive chain 622,selectively communicatively coupling the processor 510 to the antennas611, 612 via a multiplexer (MUX) 630. The transmit chain 621 may includecomponents such as a digital-to-analog converter (DAC) 641 and a poweramplifier (PA) 642. The receive chain 622 may include components such asan analog-to-digital converter (ADC) 651 and a low-noise amplifier (LNA)652. The transmit chain 621 and/or the receive chain 622 may includemeans (e.g., in the signal path or in an LO (local oscillator) or mixingpath) to shift a phase of one or more communication signals. Differentreceive chains and/or transmit chains may be provided for connection toantennas for receiving/transmitting different frequencies, e.g., mmWavefrequencies and sub-6 GHz frequencies. The receive chain may 622 beselectively coupled to one of the antennas 611, 612 at a time (e.g., forreceiving signals for different angles relative to the device 500).Similarly, the transmit chain 621 may be selectively coupled to one ofthe antennas 611, 612 at a time (e.g., for transmitting signals fordifferent angles relative to the device 500). In other examples, theantennas 611 and 612 may be utilized concurrently, and separate transmitand/or receive chains (or portions thereof) may be coupled to each ofthe antennas 611, 612.

As demand for wireless data bandwidth has increased, millimeter-wave(mmWave) devices have been deployed for 5G wireless technology. Antennaarrays with beamforming capability have been implemented to compensatefor high propagation loss at mmWave frequencies. Also, multiple mmWaveantennas, such as the antennas 421, 422 of the wireless communicationdevice 400, may offer better spherical coverage (e.g., better antennagain surrounding a wireless communication device than with a signalantenna) to help ensure sufficiently-strong/accurate signal transferto/from the wireless communication device for wireless communication.The spherical coverage is relative to a coordinate system 450 with anorigin at a center of the wireless communication device 400. Thecoordinate system 450 includes cartesian (x, y, and z) coordinates andspherical coordinates (φ and θ), with angles relative to the wirelesscommunication device 400 referred to by the spherical coordinates. Withmultiple millimeter-wave modules placed in a wireless communicationdevice such as a user equipment (UE), a housing and/or other componentsof the UE may cause spreading of a gain pattern (also called an antennapattern) of each module. This may result in significant overlapping ofantenna patterns of separate modules, which may waste spherical gaincoverage, e.g., if a single antenna (instead of multiple antennas) isused at any given time, causing degradation of an overall gaincumulative distribution function (CDF). This degradation may degradethroughput and/or latency performance, e.g., due to extra time used toselect an antenna from multiple candidates and/or selection of anantenna that provides lower performance than another antenna (e.g., forsignal transmission/reception for a particular angle relative to theUE). Overlapping gain patterns may cause confusion for a beam managementsystem that selects an antenna to use, possibly causing the beammanagement system to select the “wrong” antenna (e.g., an antenna with alower gain than another antenna for the same angle), e.g., due to aresolution limitation of the beam management system. Consequently,increasing a gain differential between gain patterns for differentantennas to avoid confusion for the beam management system can improvelatency and/or help avoid selection of the wrong antenna, improvingaccuracy of signal transfer, data throughput, etc.

For example, referring also to FIG. 7 , a graph 700 shows simulatedplots 710, 720 of slices of gain patterns for the antennas 421, 422without the electrically-conductive device 430 in place. The plots 710,720 correspond to the gain provided by the antennas 421, 422 in the y-zplane (with φ = 90° and θ ranging from 0° to 180°). In this example, adifferential between the plots 710, 720 is approximately 2 dB from aboutθ = 78° to about θ = 115°. This differential may lead to confusionbetween whether to use the antenna 421 or to use the antenna 422 in thisrange of θ for φ = 90°. For example, referring also to FIG. 8 , a graph800 is provided of the space (in spherical coordinates) around thewireless communication device 400. The graph 800 provides indications ofwhich of the antennas 421, 422 (with a “1” corresponding to the antenna421 and a “2” corresponding to the antenna 422) will be selected forsignal transmission and/or reception, with the selection being based onantenna gains at the respective angles. For the sake of simplicity ofthe figure, indications of the antennas 421, 422 are shown only within aregion 810. The antenna 421 may provide a higher gain for all angles inthe region 810 near a boresight of the antenna 421. The antennaselection unit 550 may use powers of signals received by the antennas421, 422 to select which of the antennas 421, 422 to use for signaltransmission and/or reception. Using powers of signals received by theantennas 421, 422 to select which of the antennas 421, 422 to use forsignal transmission and/or reception, however, may result in selectionof the antenna 422 for at least some of the angles in a sub-region 820of the region 810 even though the antenna 421 provides (slightly) bettergain for the angles in the sub-region 820.

The electrically-conductive device 430 is configured and disposed toprovide a gain pattern inhibitor for the antenna 422 to inhibit gain inone or more gain overlap regions, e.g., the sub-region 820 shown in FIG.8 , to increase a gain differential between gain patterns of theantennas 421, 422. Numerous implementations of gain pattern inhibitorsmay be used, including numerous configurations, locations, and/ororientations of the gain pattern inhibitors.

In an example implementation, a gain inhibitor comprises an electricalconductor disposed between an antenna and a second surface of a housingwhere the antenna is disposed along a first surface that is adjacent tothe second surface, and where another antenna is disposed along thesecond surface, e.g., such that the antennas have boresights directedfrom the adjacent surfaces. For example, the wireless communicationdevice 400 has at least a partially cuboidal shape, with multiplesurfaces connected by edges. The device 400 is at least partiallycuboidal, being at least somewhat cube-shaped, having six faces withedges connecting the faces. The device 400 may be fully cuboidal, withthe edges being sharp (e.g., 90°) edges as shown, or partially cuboidal,with at least one non-sharp (e.g., rounded) edge connecting adjacentsurfaces and/or at least one non-sharp (e.g., rounded) corner. Further,faces may be flat or non-flat (e.g., mostly flat with some deviationsfrom flat, e.g., a button protruding from a surface, a recess (e.g., aport) defined by a surface, etc., although these features are not shownin FIG. 4 for the sake of simplicity of the figure). In this example,the antenna 422 is disposed along a rear surface 460 (e.g., oppositewhere a display may be) with a boresight 424 directed out of the rearsurface 460 (here φ = 0° and θ = 90°), and the antenna 421 is disposednear a side surface 470, adjacent the rear surface 460, with a boresightdirection 423 being out of the side surface 470 (here φ = 90° and θ =90°). Depending on dimensions of the device 400 (e.g., a thickness andcurvatures between surfaces), one or more surfaces (e.g., the rearsurface 460) may be relatively flat (although a surface may havenon-flat features, e.g., one or more buttons, one or more holes, etc.)or may have little or no flat region (e.g., if a side surface waseffectively a merging of two rounded edges, one between a rear surfaceand the side surface and the other between a front surface and the sidesurface). The electrically-conductive device 430 is disposed along awidth (from the surface 470 to an opposite surface 471) between theantenna 422 and the surface 470, e.g., between the antenna 422 and anedge 490 that is between (here, connecting) the surface 460 and thesurface 470.

The electrically-conductive device 430 is configured (e.g., sized andshaped) and disposed to inhibit gain of the antenna 422, e.g., in aregion where gain overlap between gain patterns of the antennas 421, 422is undesirably high (e.g., gain differential between gain patterns isundesirably low, which may lead to selection of the antenna 422 whenselection of the antenna 421 would be better, or may cause delayedselection of the antenna 421). For example, the electrically-conductivedevice 430 may be monolithic, with a solid rectangular shape (i.e., withelectrically-conductive material (e.g., metal) occupying an entire areawithin a perimeter of the electrically-conductive device 430). Asanother example, referring also to FIG. 9 , an example 900 of theelectrically-conductive device 430 may be monolithic, with one or moreregions 910 within a perimeter of the electrically-conductive device 430not occupied by electrically-conductive material. A monolithicelectrically-conductive device may be a broadband signal blocker that isable to reduce undesired gain of signals for a large frequency range,e.g., 28 GHz to 38.5 GHz, or a wider band, or a different band (e.g.,based on size, shape, and/or location relative to the antenna 422). Asanother example, referring also to FIG. 10 , an example 1000 of theelectrically-conductive device 430 may be non-monolithic, with multipleelectrically-conductive portions 1010 disposed on a substrate 1020. Inthis example, the portions 1010 provide a regular pattern ofsimilarly-shaped (here, rectangularly-shaped), electrically-conductivepieces, but other non-monolithic configurations may be used, e.g., asdiscussed below.

Implementations of the electrically-conductive device 430 may provide afrequency-selective surface (FSS). For example, referring also to FIGS.11-12 , an FSS 1100 comprises a non-monolithic structure, havingmultiple individual FSS unit cells 1200 arranged in an array. The FSSunit cell 1200 is configured to provide band-stop characteristics, e.g.,substantially blocking (e.g., suppressing by 15 dB or more) frequenciesbetween 26 GHz and 29 GHz, at least in combination in the FSS 1100. Inthis example, the FSS unit cell 1200 is square, having sides withlengths 1210 measuring about 2 mm, including a gap 1110 between adjacentunit cells. Also in this example, the FSS unit cell 1200 is repetitive,having four repeated patterns of conductor, with each quadrant of thesquare being identical. While numerous different designs may be used,the unit cell 1200 comprises four strips of metal each extending from acenter of the unit cell 1200. Each strip is essentially a T-shaped stripof metal with a base portion (the “vertical” portion of the T) and a topportion (the “horizontal” portion of the T), with a U-shaped deviationin the base portion perpendicular to the base portion (in this case,extending to the left of the base portion (with the base portion beingvertical)). In the FSS 1100, the unit cells 1200 are discrete and notconnected to each other (e.g., separated by small gaps), such that thediscrete unit cells do not form a continuous current path. Further, theFSS 1100 will not significantly impact signals with frequencies outsideof a band-stop range, e.g., allowing sub-6 GHz signals to pass withlittle (e.g., less than 5 dB) or no attenuation. Thus, antennas of thedevice 400 using frequencies outside of a band stop range may be usedwith little impact due to use of the FSS 1100, while the FSS 1100 maysignificantly improve gain differential in regions of gain overlap ofantennas that can operate in the band stop range. Other configurationsof FSSes may be used, e.g., other sizes of unit cells, non-square shapesof unit cells, another pattern of conductive material in each unit cell,etc. which may substantially block frequencies similar to those notedabove or different frequencies (e.g., frequencies between 37 GHZ and 40GHz). In some embodiments, a combination of unit cells may beimplemented such that the FSS substantially blocks several ranges offrequencies (e.g., frequencies from 26-29 GHz and from 37-40 GHz). Forexample, an array of one type or size of unit cell may be adjacent anarray of another type or size of unit cell. As another example, unitcells of different sizes and/or configurations may be interleaved.

As another example, implementations of the electrically-conductivedevice 430 may provide one or more functions in addition to inhibitinggain of an antenna. For example, the electrically-conductive device 430may be a portion of another antenna. For example, the antenna 422 may bea mmWave antenna and the electrically-conductive device 430 may be anantenna element (e.g., radiating element) of a sub-7 GHz antenna. Theelectrically-conductive device 430 may be, for example, a dipole, amonopole, a patch, or other form of antenna element, and connected to asignal receive chain and/or a signal transmission chain by one or moreenergy couplers (e.g., an energy coupler 432 shown in FIG. 4 ).

Implementations of the electrically-conductive device 430 may have avariety of dimensions relative to an antenna. For example, as shown inFIG. 11 , the FSS 1100 may be longer than a corresponding antenna. Inthis example, the FSS 1100 has a length 1120 that is longer than alength 1130 of the antenna 422 (which may be an array of antennaelements), e.g., greater than 20% longer than the length 1130, hereapproximately twice as long as the length 1130. In other exampleimplementations, the length 1120 of the electrically-conductive device430 may be close to the same as the length 1130 of the antenna 422,e.g., between twice as long as the length 1130 and 80% as long as thelength 1130, e.g., less than about 150% as long as the length 1130 orabout the same as the length 1130. Any of a variety of widths of theelectrically-conductive device 430 may be used. For example, as shown inFIG. 11 , a width 1150 of the electrically-conductive device 430 may beabout 40% of a free-space wavelength (λ) of a low-end frequency forwhich the antenna 422 is configured, e.g., between 30% and 50% of λ. Asother examples, the width 1150 may be over 1 λ, e.g., between 1 λ and 2λ. For example, with the antenna 422 configured for operation from about28 GHz to about 38.5 GHz, the width 1150 may be between about 7 mm(about 1 λ at 38.5 GHz) and 22 mm (about 2 λ at 28 GHz). Other widthsmay be used, e.g., with the width constrained by practical limitationsof the device 500, e.g., physical limitations due to housing size andpresence of other components. For example, the width 1150 may be about 4mm.

In various implementations, the electrically-conductive device 430 maybe disposed at a variety of relative locations with respect to theantenna 422. For example, the electrically-conductive device 430 may bedisposed to overlap an aperture plane of the antenna 422, to extend“above” the aperture plane in the boresight direction 424 of the antenna422, and/or to extend “below” the aperture plane in a direction oppositethe boresight direction 424 of the antenna 422. For example, as shown inFIGS. 11 and 13 , the width 1150 of the FSS 1100 is centered along anaperture plane 1320 of the antenna 422, with an upper unit cell 1311 ofthe FSS 1100 extending away from an aperture plane 1320 in the boresightdirection 424 for a distance 1330, here the length 1210, and a lowerunit cell 1312 of the FSS 1100 extending away from the aperture plane1320 in a direction opposite the boresight direction 424 by a distance1340, here the length of the unit cell 1200 (i.e., the length 1210), andthus in this case about 20% of λ. FIG. 13 also shows a separator 1370(which may include a feed network, or may be, for example, a dielectricspacer or portion of a substrate), a ground plane 1380, and a PCB 1390or chip or integrated circuit (IC) (e.g., that may provide signals toand/or receive signals from the antenna 422). The arrangement anddistance values provided for FIG. 13 , are examples, and other relativelocations may be used. For example, the electrically-conductive device430 may extend different lengths away from the aperture plane 1320(e.g., greater than 20% of λ, such as about 30% of λ, about 40% of λ, orabout 50% of λ), may extend asymmetrically away from the aperture plane1320 (e.g., extending about 30% of λ in the boresight direction 424 andabout 10% of λ in the direction opposite the boresight direction 424),or may extend in only one direction away from the aperture plane 1320(e.g., only in the boresight direction 424 or only in the directionopposite the boresight direction 424). As other examples, a width andrelative location of the electrically-conductive device 430 may beselected to extend over a desired range of angles relative to theantenna 422. For example, referring also to FIG. 14 , theelectrically-conductive device 430 may be configured and disposed tosubtend an angle 1410 from the aperture plane 1320 toward the boresightdirection 424 and an angle 1420 from the aperture plane 1320 away fromthe boresight direction 424. Either of the angles 1410, 1420 may haveany of a variety of values, e.g., between 0° and 50°, such as at least20°, about 40°, or less than about 40°, or another angle. The anglesaway from the aperture plane 1320 subtended by theelectrically-conductive device 430 depends on the width 1150 of theelectrically-conductive device 430, how much the electrically-conductivedevice 430 extends from the aperture plane 1320, and a separationbetween the antenna 422 and the electrically-conductive device 430. Inthis example, the electrically-conductive device 430 is disposed toblock the boresight direction 423 of the antenna 421, with theelectrically-conductive device 430 subtending the angles 1410, 1420 oneither side of the boresight direction 423. The electrically-conductivedevice 430 may subtend angles corresponding to sufficient angles toeliminate undesired pattern overlap of the antennas 421, 422 (with gaindifferential below a threshold without the electrically-conductivedevice 430), e.g., may subtend angles that would have undesired patternoverlap absent the electrically-conductive device 430.

As another example of possible relative locations of theelectrically-conductive device 430 and the antenna 422, theelectrically-conductive device 430 may be displaced from the antenna 422by a variety of distances. For example, in the example shown in FIGS. 11and 13 , the FSS 1100 is displaced from the antenna 422, i.e., fromantenna elements 1350 of the antenna 422 (in this example, the antenna422 includes five antenna elements 1350 as shown in FIG. 11 , but mayinclude more or fewer antenna elements), by a distance 1360, here abouta quarter of λ. For example, with the antenna 422 configured foroperation from about 28 GHz to about 38.5 GHz, the distance 1360 may beabout 3 mm. This is an example, and other distances may be used, e.g., adistance between 10% and 50% of λ, or a distance of less than 1 λ. Theseparation distance 1360 between the antenna 422 and theelectrically-conductive device 430 may depend on the width of theelectrically-conductive device 430 and how much theelectrically-conductive device 430 extends from the aperture plane 1320.For example, the separation distance 1360 may be directly proportionalto the distance 1330 that the electrically-conductive device 430 extendsin the boresight direction 424 (i.e., with shorter distances 1330corresponding to shorter distances 1360).

The electrically-conductive device 430 may be disposed at variousdistances from a face of the wireless communication device 400associated with an antenna (e.g., the antenna 421) whose gain patternundesirably overlaps with the gain pattern of the antenna 422. Forexample, the antenna 422 may be separated from an edge 490 between therear surface 460 and the side surface 470 (e.g., where the edge 490meets the rear surface 460 for a curved edge) by a distance 481 alongthe y-axis that is shorter than a distance 482 along the y-axis betweenthe antenna 422 and an edge 491 of the opposite side surface 471(opposite the side surface 470). The electrically-conductive device 430may be displaced between the antenna 422 and the surface 470, e.g., by adistance 483 along the y-axis that is shorter than the distance 481. Forexample, the distance 482 may be less than about 1 λ (e.g., between 0 λand 0.5 λ).

In the example shown in FIG. 4 , only one gain inhibitor (theelectrically-conductive device 430) is used for only one antenna, butthis is an example and not limiting of the disclosure. For example,multiple gain inhibitors may be used for the antenna 422, e.g., disposednear the antenna 422. As another example, one or more gain inhibitorsmay be used for each of two or more antennas of a single wirelesscommunication device, e.g., each of the antennas 421, 422 of thewireless communication device 400. A gain inhibitor may be disposedbetween antennas that have gain patterns with undesirable gain overlap.For example, a gain inhibitor may be disposed near the antenna 422 in adirection where there is undesirable gain overlap with the antenna 421,here toward the surface 470 as the boresight direction 423 is outwardfrom the surface 470 and undesirable gain overlap occurs in thesub-region 820 near the boresight direction 423. As another example, again inhibitor may be used for an antenna disposed along a side surfaceof a wireless communication device instead of, or in addition to, a gaininhibitor used for an antenna disposed along a larger surface (e.g., afront or rear surface). For example, a gain inhibitor may be disposednear the antenna 421, e.g., to inhibit gain overlap with the antenna 422(e.g., inhibit gain near the boresight direction 424) and/or a gaininhibitor may be disposed near the antenna 425 to inhibit gain overlapwith the antenna 422 (e.g., inhibit gain near the boresight direction424). Such gain inhibitor(s) may be disposed substantially parallel tothe surface 460. While gain inhibitors have been discussed and shown asbeing disposed perpendicular to aperture planes of antennas, otherrelationships of gain inhibitors and antennas may be used. For example,the FSS 1100 (or other gain inhibitor) is shown in FIG. 13 as beingperpendicular to the aperture plane 1320 (parallel to the boresightdirection 424), but the FSS 1100 could be disposed at another,non-perpendicular, angle relative to the aperture plane 1320 (e.g.,within 20° of parallel to the boresight direction 424 (and thus within20° of perpendicular to the aperture plane 1320) such as 5°, 10°, 20°,-5°, -10°, -20°, or other angle relative to the boresight direction424). Further, while gain inhibitors such as the FSS 1100 have beenshown as being planar or essentially planar, other shapes may be used(e.g., a gain inhibitor with one or more curved surfaces).

The electrically-conductive device 430 may be retained in the wirelesscommunication device 400 in one or more of a variety of ways. Forexample, the device 430 may be physically attached, e.g., by a rigidmember, to the antenna 422 or a module containing the antenna 421,and/or may be physically attached to the housing 410. As anotherexample, multiple antennas may be connected by a member, e.g., by a flexcable or PCB, and the device 430 may be attached to or formed on thatmember. As another example, the device 430 may be attached to or formedon another portion of the device 400, e.g., being at least part ofanother antenna, or being part of a PCB, or a housing for a component ofthe device 430 (e.g., an IC), or a housing of another component mayprovide a portion of the device 430. As another example, the device 430or a portion thereof may be formed on (e.g., printed on) an interior ofthe housing 410. Still other implementations of theelectrically-conductive device 430 may be used.

Referring also to FIGS. 15-17 , it has been found that use of theelectrically-conductive device 430 may increase gain differentialwithout significantly affecting overall antenna performance of thewireless communication device 400. For example, a graph 1500 showssimulated plots 1510, 1520 of slices of gain patterns for the antennas421, 422 with the electrically-conductive device 430 in place. Similarto the plots 710, 720 in FIG. 7 , the plots 1510, 1520 correspond to thegain provided by the antennas 421, 422 in the y-z plane (with φ = 90°and θ ranging from 0° to 180°). In this example, a differential betweenthe plots 1510, 1520 is at least about 5 dB from about θ = 78° to aboutθ = 115° while the differential between the plots 710, 720 wasapproximately 2 dB from about θ = 78° to about θ = 115°. This largerdifferential may help the antenna selection unit 550 select the antenna421 for use for signal reception and/or transmission in the sub-region820, and/or may help the antenna selection unit 550 make this selectionfaster, than without the electrically-conductive device 430 in place. Asshown in FIG. 16 , a graph 1600 includes plots 1610, 1620 of CDF of gaindistribution about the wireless communication device 400 for theantennas 421, 422, 425 in combination, with and without theelectrically-conductive device 430 present. The plots 1610, 1620 showthe minimum gain for portions of angles in the spherical coverage areaabout the wireless communication device 400 with theelectrically-conductive device 430 in place. For example, for CDF 0.7,30% of spherical coverage angles about the wireless communication device400 will have at least about 8 dB of antenna gain provided by thecombination of the antennas 421, 422, 425, with gain for each angleprovided by a respective one of the antennas 421, 422, 425. As shown bythe plots 1610, 1620, presence of the electrically-conductive device 430has almost little if any negative impact on CDF, and indeed has somepositive impact on about 30% of coverage angles (CDF above 0.7 with theelectrically-conductive device 430 present (plot 1610) having highergain than without the electrically-conductive device 430 present (plot1620)). Also, as shown in FIG. 17 , a graph 1700, similar to the graph800, is provided of the space (in spherical coordinates) around thewireless communication device 400 but with the electrically-conductivedevice 430 in place. The graph 1700, like the graph 800, providesindications of which of the antennas 421, 422 (with a “1” correspondingto the antenna 421 and a “2” corresponding to the antenna 422) will beselected for signal transmission and/or reception, with the selectionbeing based on antenna gains at the respective angles. For the sake ofsimplicity of the figure, indications of the antennas 421, 422 are shownonly within the region 810 (the same region as shown in FIG. 8 ). As canbe seen from a comparison of the graph 1700 to the graph 800,introduction of the electrically-conductive device 430 (e.g., an FSS)has caused selection of only the antenna 421 in the region 810 asopposed to selection of the antenna 421 in most of the region 810 butselection of the antenna 422 in the sub-region 820 of the region 810.

By using a gain inhibiting structure such as the electrically-conductivedevice 430, gain pattern overlap between different antennas may bereduced (e.g., gain differential increased between overlapping gainpatterns). This may enable a beam selection algorithm implemented by theantenna selection unit 550 to select the antenna with higher receivesignal power correctly and quickly, which may result in higherthroughout and lower latency. The device 400 may, however, operatemultiple antennas concurrently, possibly with no specific ending ofconcurrent operation, or until operation of one or more of the antennasis stopped (e.g., due to selection of one of the antennas as providingthe better (or best) gain)). Quick selection of a single antenna orarray, in contrast, may reduce power consumption. Theelectrically-conductive device 430 may be a compact structure that canbe implemented in a commercial wireless communication device such as asmartphone, a tablet computer, router, CPE, etc. Various manufacturingtechniques may be used to implement the electrically-conductive device430, e.g., laser printing metal (e.g., onto a plastic housing of thedevice 400), embedding the electrically-conductive device 430 into aphone display, etc.

Implementation Examples

Implementation examples are provided in the following numbered clauses.

Clause 1. A wireless communication device comprises:

-   a first antenna comprising one or more first antenna elements with    one or more of the one or more first antenna elements being    configured to provide a first gain pattern at a millimeter-wave    radio frequency, the first antenna having a first boresight    direction;-   a second antenna comprising one or more second antenna elements with    one or more of the one or more second antenna elements being    configured to provide a second gain pattern at the millimeter-wave    radio frequency, the second antenna having a second boresight    direction that is different from the first boresight direction; and-   an electrically-conductive device, comprising at least one    conductive surface;-   wherein the first antenna, in combination with the    electrically-conductive device, is configured to provide a third    gain pattern that has a first gain differential relative to the    second gain pattern that is greater than a second gain differential    between the first gain pattern and the second gain pattern over a    range of angles relative to the wireless communication device.

Clause 2. The wireless communication device of clause 1, wherein therange of angles relative to the wireless communication device includesthe second boresight direction.

Clause 3. The wireless communication device of clause 1, wherein thefirst antenna has a first length, and the electrically-conductive devicehas a second length that is at least as long as the first length.

Clause 4. The wireless communication device of clause 3, wherein thesecond length is less than twice the first length.

Clause 5. The wireless communication device of clause 1, wherein thefirst antenna defines an aperture plane substantially perpendicular tothe first boresight direction, wherein the one or more first antennaelements are disposed on a first side of the aperture plane and at leasta portion of the at least one conductive surface is disposed on a secondside of the aperture plane opposite the first side of the apertureplane.

Clause 6. The wireless communication device of clause 5, wherein thefirst antenna has an edge in the aperture plane, and wherein the atleast a portion of the at least one conductive surface extends away fromthe aperture plane at least 20°, relative to the edge, on the secondside of the aperture plane.

Clause 7. The wireless communication device of clause 1, wherein thefirst antenna defines an aperture plane substantially perpendicular tothe first boresight direction, and wherein the one or more first antennaelements and at least a portion of the at least one conductive surfaceare disposed on a same side of the aperture plane.

Clause 8. The wireless communication device of clause 7, wherein thefirst antenna has an edge in the aperture plane, and wherein the atleast a portion of the at least one conductive surface extends away fromthe aperture plane at least 20°, relative to the edge, on the same sideof the aperture plane.

Clause 9. The wireless communication device of clause 1, wherein the atleast one conductive surface is displaced from the first antenna bybetween 20% of a wavelength at the millimeter-wave radio frequency and50% of the wavelength at the millimeter-wave radio frequency.

Clause 10. The wireless communication device of clause 1, wherein the atleast one conductive surface defines a conductive plane within 20° ofparallel to the first boresight direction.

Clause 11. The wireless communication device of clause 10, wherein theelectrically-conductive device comprises a frequency-selective surfaceconfigured to inhibit passage through the electrically-conductive deviceof first energy of a particular frequency range more than second energyoutside the particular frequency range, the particular frequency rangeincluding the millimeter-wave radio frequency.

Clause 12. The wireless communication device of clause 1, wherein themillimeter-wave radio frequency is a first frequency that is above 25GHz, the wireless communication device further comprising a thirdantenna that includes the electrically-conductive device, and whereinthe electrically-conductive device is configured to provide a fourthgain pattern at a second frequency band that is below 7 GHz.

Clause 13. The wireless communication device of clause 1, wherein theelectrically-conductive device comprises a monolithic conductor thatprovides the at least one conductive surface.

Clause 14. The wireless communication device of clause 1, wherein theelectrically-conductive device comprises a frequency-selective surfaceconfigured to inhibit passage through the electrically-conductive deviceof first energy of a particular frequency range more than second energyoutside the particular frequency range, the particular frequency rangeincluding the millimeter-wave radio frequency.

Clause 15. The wireless communication device of clause 14, wherein thefrequency-selective surface comprises a plurality of conductive cellsdisplaced from each other.

Clause 16. The wireless communication device of clause 14, wherein thefrequency-selective surface is configured to suppress frequencies in anapproximately 3 GHz bandwidth in the 20 GHz or 30 GHz range by 15 dB ormore.

Clause 17. The wireless communication device of clause 1, furthercomprising a processor communicatively coupled to the first antenna andthe second antenna and configured to:

-   determine a first power level of a first signal received by the    first antenna from a particular angle relative to a housing of the    wireless communication device;-   determine a second power level of a second signal received by the    second antenna from the particular angle relative to the housing;    and-   select one of the first antenna and the second antenna to at least    one or transmit or receive a third signal corresponding to the    particular angle relative to the housing based on which of the first    power level and the second power level is higher.

Clause 18. The wireless communication device of clause 1, furthercomprising a housing containing the first antenna and the second antennaand defining at least a partially cuboidal shape including a firstsurface, a second surface, and a third surface, wherein the firstboresight direction is substantially perpendicular to the first surface,the second boresight direction is substantially perpendicular to thesecond surface, and the second surface is disposed opposite the thirdsurface and displaced from the third surface along an axis of thehousing, and wherein the first antenna is displaced a first distancealong the axis from the second surface and displaced a second distancealong the axis from the third surface, the first distance being shorterthan the second distance.

Other Considerations

Other examples and implementations are within the scope of thedisclosure and appended claims. For example, configurations other thanthose shown may be used. Also, due to the nature of software andcomputers, functions described above can be implemented using softwareexecuted by a processor, hardware, firmware, hardwiring, or acombination of any of these. Features implementing functions may also bephysically located at various positions, including being distributedsuch that portions of functions are implemented at different physicallocations.

As used herein, the singular forms “a,” “an,” and “the” include theplural forms as well, unless the context clearly indicates otherwise.The terms “comprises,” “comprising,” “includes,” and/or “including,” asused herein, specify the presence of stated features, integers, steps,operations, elements, and/or components, but do not preclude thepresence or addition of one or more other features, integers, steps,operations, elements, components, and/or groups thereof.

Also, as used herein, “or” as used in a list of items (possibly prefacedby “at least one of” or prefaced by “one or more of”) indicates adisjunctive list such that, for example, a list of “at least one of A,B, or C,” or a list of “one or more of A, B, or C” or a list of “A or Bor C” means A, or B, or C, or AB (A and B), or AC (A and C), or BC (Band C), or ABC (i.e., A and B and C), or combinations with more than onefeature (e.g., AA, AAB, ABBC, etc.). Thus, a recitation that an item,e.g., a processor, is configured to perform a function regarding atleast one of A or B, or a recitation that an item is configured toperform a function A or a function B, means that the item may beconfigured to perform the function regarding A, or may be configured toperform the function regarding B, or may be configured to perform thefunction regarding A and B. For example, a phrase of “a processorconfigured to measure at least one of A or B” or “a processor configuredto measure A or measure B” means that the processor may be configured tomeasure A (and may or may not be configured to measure B), or may beconfigured to measure B (and may or may not be configured to measure A),or may be configured to measure A and measure B (and may be configuredto select which, or both, of A and B to measure). Similarly, arecitation of a means for measuring at least one of A or B includesmeans for measuring A (which may or may not be able to measure B), ormeans for measuring B (and may or may not be configured to measure A),or means for measuring A and B (which may be able to select which, orboth, of A and B to measure). As another example, a recitation that anitem, e.g., a processor, is configured to at least one of performfunction X or perform function Y means that the item may be configuredto perform the function X, or may be configured to perform the functionY, or may be configured to perform the function X and to perform thefunction Y. For example, a phrase of “a processor configured to at leastone of measure X or measure Y” means that the processor may beconfigured to measure X (and may or may not be configured to measure Y),or may be configured to measure Y (and may or may not be configured tomeasure X), or may be configured to measure X and to measure Y (and maybe configured to select which, or both, of X and Y to measure).

As used herein, unless otherwise stated, a statement that a function oroperation is “based on” an item or condition means that the function oroperation is based on the stated item or condition and may be based onone or more items and/or conditions in addition to the stated item orcondition.

Substantial variations may be made in accordance with specificrequirements. For example, customized hardware might also be used,and/or particular elements might be implemented in hardware, software(including portable software, such as applets, etc.) executed by aprocessor, or both. Further, connection to other computing devices suchas network input/output devices may be employed. Components, functionalor otherwise, shown in the figures and/or discussed herein as beingconnected or communicating with each other are communicatively coupledunless otherwise noted. That is, they may be directly or indirectlyconnected to enable communication between them.

The systems and devices discussed above are examples. Variousconfigurations may omit, substitute, or add various procedures orcomponents as appropriate. For instance, features described with respectto certain configurations may be combined in various otherconfigurations. Different aspects and elements of the configurations maybe combined in a similar manner. Also, technology evolves and, thus,many of the elements are examples and do not limit the scope of thedisclosure or claims.

A wireless communication system is one in which communications areconveyed wirelessly, i.e., by electromagnetic and/or acoustic wavespropagating through atmospheric space rather than through a wire orother physical connection. A wireless communication network may not haveall communications transmitted wirelessly, but is configured to have atleast some communications transmitted wirelessly. Further, the term“wireless communication device,” or similar term, does not require thatthe functionality of the device is exclusively, or evenly primarily, forcommunication, or that communication using the wireless communicationdevice is exclusively, or evenly primarily, wireless, or that the devicebe a mobile device, but indicates that the device includes wirelesscommunication capability (one-way or two-way), e.g., includes at leastone radio (each radio being part of a transmitter, receiver, ortransceiver) for wireless communication.

Specific details are given in the description to provide a thoroughunderstanding of example configurations (including implementations).However, configurations may be practiced without these specific details.For example, well-known circuits, processes, algorithms, structures, andtechniques have been shown without unnecessary detail in order to avoidobscuring the configurations. This description provides exampleconfigurations, and does not limit the scope, applicability, orconfigurations of the claims. Rather, the preceding description of theconfigurations provides a description for implementing describedtechniques. Various changes may be made in the function and arrangementof elements.

The terms “processor-readable medium,” “machine-readable medium,” and“computer-readable medium,” as used herein, refer to any medium thatparticipates in providing data that causes a machine to operate in aspecific fashion. Using a computing platform, various processor-readablemedia might be involved in providing instructions/code to processor(s)for execution and/or might be used to store and/or carry suchinstructions/code (e.g., as signals). In many implementations, aprocessor-readable medium is a physical and/or tangible storage medium.Such a medium may take many forms, including but not limited to,non-volatile media and volatile media. Non-volatile media include, forexample, optical and/or magnetic disks. Volatile media include, withoutlimitation, dynamic memory.

Having described several example configurations, various modifications,alternative constructions, and equivalents may be used. For example, theabove elements may be components of a larger system, wherein other rulesmay take precedence over or otherwise modify the application of thedisclosure. Also, a number of operations may be undertaken before,during, or after the above elements are considered. Accordingly, theabove description does not bound the scope of the claims.

Unless otherwise indicated, “about” and/or “approximately” as usedherein when referring to a measurable value such as an amount, atemporal duration, and the like, encompasses variations of ±20% or ±10%,±5%, or +0.1% from the specified value, as appropriate in the context ofthe systems, devices, circuits, methods, and other implementationsdescribed herein. Unless otherwise indicated, “substantially” as usedherein when referring to a measurable value such as an amount, atemporal duration, a physical attribute (such as frequency), and thelike, also encompasses variations of ±20% or ±10%, ±5%, or +0.1% fromthe specified value, as appropriate in the context of the systems,devices, circuits, methods, and other implementations described herein.

A statement that a value exceeds (or is more than or above) a firstthreshold value is equivalent to a statement that the value meets orexceeds a second threshold value that is slightly greater than the firstthreshold value, e.g., the second threshold value being one value higherthan the first threshold value in the resolution of a computing system.A statement that a value is less than (or is within or below) a firstthreshold value is equivalent to a statement that the value is less thanor equal to a second threshold value that is slightly lower than thefirst threshold value, e.g., the second threshold value being one valuelower than the first threshold value in the resolution of a computingsystem.

1. A wireless communication device comprising: an antenna comprising oneor more antenna elements with one or more of the one or more antennaelements being configured to provide a first gain pattern at amillimeter-wave radio frequency, the antenna having a boresightdirection; and an electrically-conductive device comprising at least oneconductive surface disposed adjacent to the antenna that isapproximately parallel with the boresight direction, wherein theantenna, in combination with the electrically-conductive device, isconfigured to provide a second gain pattern that is different from thefirst gain pattern.
 2. The wireless communication device of claim 1,wherein the antenna has a first length, and the electrically-conductivedevice has a second length that is at least as long as the first length.3. The wireless communication device of claim 1, wherein the antenna hasa first length, and the electrically-conductive device has a secondlength that is less than the first length.
 4. The wireless communicationdevice of claim 1, wherein the electrically-conductive device isphysically attached to the antenna.
 5. The wireless communication deviceof claim 1, wherein the electrically-conductive device is physicallyattached to a housing of the wireless communication device.
 6. Thewireless communication device of claim 1 further comprising a displaylayer and a bottom cover, wherein the antenna is disposed between thedisplay layer and the bottom cover, and the electrically-conductivedevice is disposed between the antenna and the bottom cover.
 7. Thewireless communication device of claim 1, wherein the one or moreantenna elements are disposed on a substrate in an antenna module, andthe electrically-conductive device is physically attached to the antennamodule.
 8. The wireless communication device of claim 1, wherein theelectrically-conductive device comprises a monolithic conductor thatprovides the at least one conductive surface.
 9. The wirelesscommunication device of claim 1, wherein the electrically-conductivedevice is non-monolithic.
 10. The wireless communication device of claim9, wherein the electrically-conductive device comprises a regularpattern of similarly-shaped electrically-conductive pieces.
 11. Thewireless communication device of claim 1, wherein the antenna has afirst width, and the electrically-conductive device has a second widththat is wider than the first width.
 12. The wireless communicationdevice of claim 1, wherein the electrically-conductive device extendsaway from the antenna in a direction that is opposite to the boresightdirection.
 13. The wireless communication device of claim 1, wherein theat least one conductive surface is displaced from the antenna withinless than 20% of a wavelength at the millimeter-wave radio frequency.14. The wireless communication device of claim 1 wherein the antennaincludes an array of antennas.
 15. A wireless communication devicecomprising: a top cover; a bottom cover that is substantially parallelto the top cover; an antenna comprising one or more antenna elementsdisposed between the top cover and the bottom cover, the one or moreantenna elements being configured to provide a first gain pattern at amillimeter-wave radio frequency, the antenna having a boresightdirection directed out of a side surface of the device between the topcover and the bottom cover; and an electrically-conductive devicecomprising at least one conductive surface that is disposed between theantenna and the bottom cover and is approximately parallel with the topcover, the electrically-conductive device having a length that is atleast a length of the antenna, and a width that extends away from theantenna in an opposite direction from the boresight direction, whereinthe antenna, in combination with the electrically-conductive device, isconfigured to provide a second gain pattern that is different from thefirst gain pattern.
 16. The wireless communication device of claim 15,wherein the electrically-conductive device is physically attached to theantenna.
 17. The wireless communication device of claim 15, wherein theelectrically-conductive device is physically attached to the bottomcover.
 18. The wireless communication device of claim 15, wherein theelectrically-conductive device comprises a monolithic conductor thatprovides the at least one conductive surface, and wherein the at leastone conductive surface is displaced from the antenna along an apertureplane of the antenna.
 19. The wireless communication device of claim 18,wherein the width is less than two free-space wavelengths of a low-endfrequency for which the antenna is configured, wherein the antennaincludes an array of antennas, and wherein the length is less than twiceas long as a length of the array.
 20. The wireless communication deviceof claim 15, wherein the electrically-conductive device comprises aregular pattern of similarly-shaped electrically-conductive pieces.